(CNN) – People have all sorts of questions for presidential candidates in an election year. But there was one question I asked last weekend that scores of readers griped about:

Why do so many people doubt President Barack Obama’s faith?

Obama has talked publicly about his faith for years, but doubts persist. Why? Was it race? Was he a different kind of Christian than his predecessors? How can anyone judge whether another person is a Christian?

Those are some of the questions I presented in the article. The reaction was stunning: more than 8,000 comments, 25,000 Facebook shares, 700 tweets and citations on political websites such as Talking Points Memo and the Washington Monthly.

Praise and criticism came from all political sides – liberals and conservatives both liked the piece and loathed it. Some saw it as a ringing defense of the progressive Christian traditions that shaped Obama’s faith. Others thought I was trying to sabotage the president's re-election chances with an unfair question.

The comments from readers tended to land on certain themes.

He’s not Christian – no matter what anybody says:

I got the impression that if Obama were suddenly surrounded by an angelic host during a press conference, and the voice of God declared, “He is not a Muslim,” some still would not believe it.

A reader named “Paul” put it this way:

"Sorry, the premise that Obama is a new kind of Christian is, in my opinion, just flat wrong. He is a Muslim."

Who gets to determine if someone is a Christian?

Other readers took offense at some pastors in the article who declared that Obama couldn’t be a Christian because he never talked about being “born again” and he supported same-sex marriage and abortion rights.

The article mentioned several prominent conservative Christians – including Focus on the Family founder James Dobson and the Rev. Franklin Graham, the son of Billy Graham – who questioned Obama’s faith.

One pastor in the article, the Rev. Steven Andrew, author of “Making a Strong Nation,” even said that he thought Obama was “an anti-Christ.”

A reader identified as “C. J Mills” wrote:

"These ministers represent the kind of Christianity that makes me reluctant to say to people I don't know that I'm a Christian, and the kind of speakers for the faith that drove all my children out of churches because they would not put up with such judgmentmentalism. ..."

A ‘hit’ piece on Obama?

What was most surprising to me was the reaction of Obama supporters. The article featured several progressive Christians who said the sources for Obama’s faith are not sinister. The president’s faith is influenced by a brand of liberal Protestantism that dominated American public life during the early 20th century and a biblical perspective shaped by his exposure to the black church and the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.

A “Cindy” called me Sunday and left a two-minute phone message skewering the story, and added a lengthy e-mail.

Her message:

"Your Sunday morning pre-election hit piece on President Obama is an outrage! ‘Is he the right kind of Christian?’ ‘He’s been called the anti-Christ.’ Really? It is disgusting, and doing it on a Sunday morning is an outrage."

I called Cindy at home and, after apologizing for her “cranky” message, she explained the source for some of her anger. She’s an Obama supporter living in a conservative state, and she said was on edge because of the election. She thought any article questioning Obama’s faith would convince people not to vote for him.

Another reader, “Muffin72,” had the opposite reaction. The reader thought the article was a puff piece on Obama:

"Nice CNN Obama PR piece trying to get a last grasp at another group of voters. … You can't support abortion and be a good Christian at the same time. ... Sorry, it just doesn't compute."

Other commentators asked when I would write a story asking if Mitt Romney, the Republican presidential candidate, was a Christian. One commentator frankly declared progressive Christianity was an “apostate form of false Christianity.”

One of most unusual comments came from a “Clarke.”

"John Blake, I do not care for your article. To be fair, please tell us in your own words, what is the right Jew, the right Mormon, the right Christian. Why CNN would let you write about any religion, is beyond me. Religion is a personal thing, and does not belong on your sleeve and for you to judge others is just wrong. Makes me wonder if there was not money exchanged for this article. Shame, shame on you and CNN."

I can assure you Clarke, no one paid me to write the story. Yet there was a payoff for me.

Most journalists love to get people talking about what they write. Though I’ll always wonder if some of the commenters actually read the entire article, I’m glad that a provocative question could generate so many follow-up questions, even angry ones.

soundoff(1,150 Responses)

Gravity is not up for debate ! ............E = mc2..........(U–Pb).................two math formulas..........that do not lie or sin !!!..........

BY the way ...................Splat goes a fairy in the sky !...............bye bye tinker bell !

Einstein's Gravity Theory Passes Toughest Test Yet

Apr. 25, 2013 — A strange stellar pair nearly 7,000 light-years from Earth has provided physicists with a unique cosmic laboratory for studying the nature of gravity. The extremely strong gravity of a massive neutron star in orbit with a companion white dwarf star puts competing theories of gravity to a test more stringent than any available before

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/04/130425142250.htm

Hey James Madison................religion has none it looks like.............with the comments on this blog.

The Big question is ETHICS ! does religion have any ?

The Ethics of Resurrecting Extinct Species

Apr. 8, 2013 — At some point, scientists may be able to bring back extinct animals, and perhaps early humans, raising questions of ethics and environmental disruption.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/04/130408165955.htm

April 30, 2013 at 4:16 pm | Report abuse |

May 1, 2013 at 12:42 pm | Report abuse |

Dinosaur Egg Study Supports Evolutionary Link Between Birds and Dinosaurs: How Troodon Likely Hatched Its Young

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/04/130418104324.htm

And NO ANGELS the pope KICKED them OFF the TEAM last year !

From Soup to Cells—the Origin of Life

http://evolution.berkeley.edu/evosite/evo101/IIE2aOriginoflife.shtml

the wrong path is Adam and Eve !

Human Y Chromosome Much Older Than Previously Thought

Mar. 4, 2013 — The discovery and analysis of an extremely rare African American Y chromosome pushes back the time of the most recent common ancestor for the Y chromosome lineage tree to 338,000 years ago. This time predates the age of the oldest known anatomically modern human fossils.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/03/130305145821.htm

No god(s) needed or required to graduate from public schools in the US

Remember : Adam had to POKE himself hard with his OWN BONE to create Eve.

Apr. 23, 2013 — Ancient DNA recovered from a series of skeletons in central Germany up to 7,500 years old has been used to reconstruct the first detailed genetic history of modern Europe.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/04/130423134037.htm

Ca-nabis and Cannabinoids (PDQ®) – National Cancer Insti-tute

http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/pdq/cam/cannabis/.../page4

Mar 21, 2013 – [1,2] These plant-derived compounds may be referred to as phytocannabinoids. ... have a protective effect against the development of certain types of tumors. ... In lung cancer cell lines, CBD upregulated ICAM-1, leading to ...

Good stuff !

The fact...............the earth is to old for this nonsemse ! Time to EVOLVE !

Ancient Earth Crust Stored in Deep Mantle

Apr. 24, 2013 — Scientists have long believed that lava erupted from certain oceanic volcanoes contains materials from the early Earth's crust. But decisive evidence for this phenomenon has proven elusive. New research from a team including Carnegie's Erik Hauri demonstrates that oceanic volcanic rocks contain samples of recycled crust dating back to the Archean era 2.5 billion years ago. Their work is published in Nature.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/04/130424132705.htm

For what...................... ? Make sure to read what the pope said !

Where do morals come from?

By Kelly Murray, CNN

http://religion.blogs.cnn.com/

Learning is fun with facts.......................... and facts work when teaching children.

Pope praises science, but insists God created world updated Thur October 28, 2010
Stephen Hawking is wrong, Pope Benedict XVI said Thursday – God did create the universe. The pope didn't actually mention the world-famous scientist, who argues in a book published last month that the laws of physics show there is no need for a supreme... \

Heaven is 'a fairy story,' scientist Stephen Hawking says updated Tue May 17, 2011
By Dan Gilgoff, CNN.com Religion Editor The concept of heaven or any kind of afterlife is a "fairy story," famed British scientist Stephen Hawking said in a newspaper interview this week. "I regard the brain as a computer which will stop working when...

NASA: Three planets found are some of best candidates so far for habitable worlds outside our solar system.

http://www.cnn.com/2013/04/18/us/planet-discovery/index.html

NASA: Mars could have supported life

Star Dust we are

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aWdU_px9ApE&w=640&h=390]

Holy Hallucinations 35

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3XTCRdC8Dlo&w=640&h=390]

The ORIGIN story is bullsh-it...............so is the bible............... nasty !

From Soup to Cells—the Origin of Life

http://evolution.berkeley.edu/evosite/evo101/IIE2aOriginoflife.shtml

Scientists have unearthed the first direct signs of cheesemaking, at a site in Poland that dates back 7,500 years.

Human Evolution

http://evolution.berkeley.edu/evosite/evo101/IIE2cHumanevo.shtml

BBC. Planet of the Apemen. Battle for Earth 1. Ho-mo Erectus

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TUliLKSJ4bQ&w=640&h=390]

BACKFILL on E =mc2.....

Einstein letter, set for auction, shows scientist challenging idea of God, being 'chosen'

By Jessica Ravitz, CNN

Decades before atheist scientist and author Richard Dawkins called God a "delusion," one world-renowned physicist – Albert Einstein – was weighing in on faith matters with his own strong words.

“The word God is for me nothing more than the expression and product of human weaknesses, the Bible a collection of honorable, but still primitive legends,” Einstein wrote in German in a 1954 letter that will be auctioned on eBay later this month. "No interpretation no matter how subtle can (for me) change this.”

The fact...............the earth is to old ...........time to EVOLVE !.

Ancient Earth Crust Stored in Deep Mantle

Apr. 24, 2013 — Scientists have long believed that lava erupted from certain oceanic volcanoes contains materials from the early Earth's crust. But decisive evidence for this phenomenon has proven elusive. New research from a team including Carnegie's Erik Hauri demonstrates that oceanic volcanic rocks contain samples of recycled crust dating back to the Archean era 2.5 billion years ago. Their work is published in Nature.

Detailed satellite images reveal the web of connections that sustain life on Earth. Aired February 13, 2013 on PBS

Program Description

"Earth From Space" is a groundbreaking two-hour special that reveals a spectacular new space-based vision of our planet. Produced in extensive consultation with NASA scientists, NOVA takes data from earth-observing satellites and transforms it into dazzling visual sequences, each one exposing the intricate and surprising web of forces that sustains life on earth. Viewers witness how dust blown from the Sahara fertilizes the Amazon; how a vast submarine "waterfall" off Antarctica helps drive ocean currents around the world; and how the sun's heating up of the southern Atlantic gives birth to a colossally powerful hurricane. From the microscopic world of water molecules vaporizing over the ocean to the magnetic field that is bigger than Earth itself, the show reveals the astonishing beauty and complexity of our dynamic planet.

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/space/earth-from-space.html

February 16, 2013 at 7:18 am | Report abuse |

Peace

May 5, 2013 at 8:31 am |

Mike

Speaking of faith. Does Obama still have faith in Pastor #2? Pastor Lowery, he gave the inauguration benediction, has said that all white folks were going to hell. Obama sure knows how to pick 'em. They all hate white people.

November 2, 2012 at 12:02 am |

gkerrister

Religion – a childish preoccupation, and politics do not mix.

what is wrong with the usa and its notion that religion, preferably fanaticism, matters?

October 26, 2012 at 5:19 pm |

Justme,wyoming

So, where is the piece on Mitt Romney's faith? I just have to wonder why it is okay to delve into the President's faith but not report on the fact that Mitt Romney is still a high priest in the church!

October 26, 2012 at 3:16 pm |

Get Real

There are at least two articles regarding Romney and Mormonism on the top banner of this page.... and many others on these blogs also. Pay attention, ok?

October 26, 2012 at 3:27 pm |

NYRepub

I think religion plays a role in who the person is. I could not vote for Romney because my Evangilical faith has told me that Mormanism is a cult. Romney was a Bishop in the Morman church. I hear some Evangilical pastors ignoring their past teaching and supporting Romney. To me they are selling out their souls because of hate. I'm voting for Obama becuase he is a Christian and shares more Christian values than Romneys mega Morman big money church. Otherwise you may as well vote for a Scientologist!!.

October 26, 2012 at 12:35 pm |

Mittology

Boo

October 26, 2012 at 3:21 pm |

juny1958

what amazes me is all the people on here who call the bible and God an illusion because there is no "evidence". Seriously, read the fist chapter of Romans to see what Paul says about people of that ilk......these words will fall on deaf eyes because men repress the truth, they like the darkness and hide from the light.......1st chapter of Romans, probably take 2 minutes to read it.....

Plain to me that most people don't understand Christianity. Not their fault; lots of Christians totally misrepresent it. It's not supposed to be a container to hold all our prejudices, hatreds fears of others. Jesus confronted all of that, particularly in the religious people of his time. A real look at Yeh gospels, with a little help on the idioms of the time (cf., the fig tree!) would probably be a big surprise. And since it days absolutely nothing about abortion, I can't understand where people get off ruling Obama out of the church for his political work on choice for women (which is not the same thing as being *for* abortion).

October 26, 2012 at 8:38 am |

Verimius

For those who believe President Obama is a Muslim, he has been seen eating pork and drinking alcohol.

The belief that he is a Muslim is based on faith, not evidence.

October 25, 2012 at 8:52 pm |

Atheist Hunter

http://lasttrumpetnewsletter.org/2012/10_12.html

"I also will choose their delusions, and will bring their fears upon them; because when I called, none did answer; when I spake, they did not hear: but they did evil before mine eyes, and chose that in which I delighted not."
Isaiah 66:4, KJV

". . . because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie:"
2 Thessalonians 2:10b-11, KJV

October 25, 2012 at 10:53 am |

sally

You're pathetic. All you can do is post fairy tales and misinformation from David Barton?

October 25, 2012 at 5:34 pm |

WASP

@AH: here is the million dollar question; whom did he make believe a lie? you or me? lmfao

October 26, 2012 at 7:38 am |

Reality

STOP AND READ CAREFULLY !!! -–>>>>

– Only for the new members of this blog:

Romney believes that the horn-blowing angel Moroni appeared to the con artist Joe Smith. Not good for someone who wants to be president of any group !!!

Obama "mouths" that he is Christian i.e. believes in gay Gabriel and war-mongering Michael the Archangel and Satan. BO's support of abortion/choice however vitiates his Christianity as he is the leader of the Immoral Majority who are now the largest voting bloc in the country. Immoral Majority you ask??

39 x 2 million = 78 million. Abortion rate in the USA as per the CDC is ~one million/yr.

And the presidential popular vote in 2008? 69,456,897 for pro-abortion/choice BO, 59,934,814 for "pro-life" JM. The population of the Immoral Majority in 2008? ~ 70 million !!!!!!

October 25, 2012 at 8:06 am |

Tom, Tom, the Other One

Is abortion immoral, or is it immoral to deny women the option of abortion? Also, supposing that abortion is immoral, is it immoral to refuse to prohibit abortion.

October 25, 2012 at 8:16 am |

Atheist Hunter

Yes abortion is immoral! You're welcome!

October 25, 2012 at 11:11 am |

Reality

The reality of se-x, abortion, contraception and STD/HIV control: – from a guy who enjoys intelligent se-x-

Note: Some words hyphenated to defeat an obvious word filter. ...

The Brutal Effects of Stupidity:

: The failures of the widely used birth "control" methods i.e. the Pill (8.7% actual failure rate) and male con-dom (17.4% actual failure rate) have led to the large rate of abortions and S-TDs in the USA. Men and women must either recognize their responsibilities by using the Pill or co-ndoms properly and/or use safer methods in order to reduce the epidemics of abortion and S-TDs.- Failure rate statistics provided by the Gut-tmacher Inst-itute. Unfortunately they do not give the statistics for doubling up i.e. using a combination of the Pill and a condom.

Added information before making your next move:

from the CDC-2006

"Se-xually transmitted diseases (STDs) remain a major public health challenge in the United States. While substantial progress has been made in preventing, diagnosing, and treating certain S-TDs in recent years, CDC estimates that approximately 19 million new infections occur each year, almost half of them among young people ages 15 to 24.1 In addition to the physical and psy-ch-ological consequences of S-TDs, these diseases also exact a tremendous economic toll. Direct medical costs as-sociated with STDs in the United States are estimated at up to $14.7 billion annually in 2006 dollars."

And from:

Consumer Reports, January, 2012

"Yes, or-al se-x is se-x, and it can boost cancer risk-

Here's a crucial message for teens (and all se-xually active "post-teeners": Or-al se-x carries many of the same risks as va-ginal se-x, including human papilloma virus, or HPV. And HPV may now be overtaking tobacco as the leading cause of or-al cancers in America in people under age 50.

"Adolescents don’t think or-al se-x is something to worry about," said Bonnie Halpern-Felsher professor of pediatrics at the University of California, San Francisco. "They view it as a way to have intimacy without having 's-ex.'" (It should be called the Bill Clinton Syndrome !!)

Obviously, political leaders in both parties, Planned Parenthood, parents, the "stupid part of the USA" and the educational system have failed miserably on many fronts.

Every other method ranks below these, including Withdrawal (4.0), Female condom (5.0), Diaphragm (6.0), Periodic abstinence (calendar) (9.0), the Sponge (9.0-20.0, depending on whether the woman using it has had a child in the past), Cervical cap (9.0-26.0, with the same caveat as the Sponge), and Spermicides (18.0).

October 25, 2012 at 11:27 am |

NYRepub

As an Evangelical I dare you vote for Romney who is a leader of a cult religion. Once you cast your vote for a cult leader you have given him your approval to take your soul and baptize you in the Morman faith. Your soul will be cast into the depths of the fires with all the other cult members. Good luck

October 26, 2012 at 12:47 pm |

A Few Theological Questions For Topher

Glad to see you here, Topher. Now you can answer the theological questions you asked for but did not answer:

How did Noah round up all the 3,000,000 non bacterial land species and get them from all over the globe to the ark? How did he build a 440' ark out of wood when all attempts to built steel-reinfoirced wooden vessels over 300-350 feet failed (wood is not strong enough, no matter how much you use). If there were only 8 people, how did they feed those 6,000,000 animals – they woul have had to feed 4 species a second non-stop 24/7 for the whole journey. How did they get 6,000,000 animals and all their food into a 1,500,000 cubit foot structure? How did we get all the different races from Noah's descendants, who would have been the source of all humans?

October 25, 2012 at 1:51 am |

A Few Theological Questions For Topher

I guess Topher is going to flee the subject again, for the fourth time. He was just here a minute before I put this up.

Ah well, that tells it's own story, doesn't it?

October 25, 2012 at 2:12 am |

sam stone

Topher? Run from a question? Absurd

October 25, 2012 at 7:12 am |

sam stone

he is not dodging the question. he is dodging the answer

October 25, 2012 at 7:21 am |

Atheist Hunter

A Few Theological Questions For Topher.......... I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me! God was on his side and NOTHING is impossible with God! Topher's busy!

How can anything 2000 years old be otherwise? And nothing since then to substantiate it.

October 25, 2012 at 12:00 am |

Topher

So your problem is with the Bible?

October 25, 2012 at 12:03 am |

Athy

Without the bible what would you have? People are predisposed to believe in some supernatural control of their lives. The bible and other written material merely helps their delusions. To me, it's all blatant nonsense. If there were a god, there would be some irrefutable evidence for him. There is none.

OK, well let's just say for the sake of a conversation, that God is real and there really is a Heaven ... are you good enough to go there?

October 25, 2012 at 12:27 am |

Athy

You can say whatever you want, but since you offer no proof or evidence and common sense dictates otherwise, I disbelieve your belief.

October 25, 2012 at 12:31 am |

Topher

Yeah, I know you don't believe it. I'm just trying to figure out if, according to the Bible, you'd be able to go to Heaven. So are you a good person?

October 25, 2012 at 12:34 am |

Athy

Who the hell knows? What do I have to do, keep some sort of score? Since there is no heaven, it's totally irrelevant. When I die, I'll just die and that's it. Same for you and everyone else. I know you believe otherwise and if you need that belief to make you comfortable, go for it. I take a more pragmatic view based on observation and common sense.

October 25, 2012 at 12:41 am |

Topher

I guess you could call it score keeping. :) Just take some honest guesses at the following ...

1. How many lies have you told in your whole life?
2. Have you ever stolen anything? (It doesn't matter if the item was small, of little value or a long time ago.)
3. Have you ever taken the Lord's name and used it as an expression of disgust?
4. Here's one that gets most of us ... Jesus said if you look at someone with lu.st, you've committed adultery with that person in your heart. Have you ever done that?

October 25, 2012 at 12:53 am |

Athy

I'm not playing your silly game. It doesn't matter, it's irrelevant, and I don't believe there is a heaven, a god or hell. I'm not buying your drivel, so go knock on the next door. Sorry if I'm blunt, but you're too pushy.

October 25, 2012 at 1:00 am |

Topher

Wow. I don't mean to be pushy. Sorry about that. I'm just trying to have a conversation.

Do you have any questions for me?

October 25, 2012 at 1:02 am |

Athy

None. Your answers make no sense. Good night.

October 25, 2012 at 1:07 am |

Topher

You haven't asked me anything yet.

October 25, 2012 at 1:08 am |

Athy

Correction: Your answers, based on our conversation up to now, would not likely make any sense to me. And I could easily anticipate your answers anyway, so why waste my time, and yours as well. You can use the time saved by trying to convert some other "poor lost soul". Or reading your precious bible.

October 25, 2012 at 1:24 am |

Keeping It Real

Topher,

Your reputation precedes you here... and I'm sure that Athy has seen many posts from you.

It seems that you cannot otherwise control yourself nor think of any reasons to behave well in society without your old-time Middle Eastern Hebrew fantasy threats and promises.

I'm sure that you mean well, but you really have nothing of substance to offer.

Peace to you.

October 25, 2012 at 1:30 am |

Topher

Athy

"Your answers, based on our conversation up to now, would not likely make any sense to me."

That's what I'm here for ... to try and help people understand what the Bible says. Reject it if you want to, but don't you want to know what you are rejecting?

October 25, 2012 at 1:43 am |

Athy

Not really. I rejected it long ago, and it hasn't changed since then. Goodbye.

October 25, 2012 at 1:46 am |

WASP

@athy: i think i'm in love. lol
however if you're a dude i will sett for a handshake. XD

October 25, 2012 at 8:55 am |

ttwp

Why do so many people doubt President Barack Obama’s faith?

"By their fruit you will recognize them..." Matthew 7:16

October 24, 2012 at 9:52 pm |

Smite You

Unless you are an out-of-season fig tree. Then you get smited anyway! :twisted:

October 24, 2012 at 9:58 pm |

Observer

ttwp,

Where does the Bible substantiate Mitt Romney's Mormons claims that the Garden of Eden was in North America?

October 24, 2012 at 10:35 pm |

Inquiring minds want to know

How does a guy who knows all sorts of things telepathically like there's an unridden donkey in the next town not know that a fig tree doesn't have figs?

Why did he get mad at a fig tree for not having figs on it out of season? Getting mad at tree's is a bit sanity-challenged, so to speak.

October 24, 2012 at 11:08 pm |

Athy

"trees", not "tree's". Try rereading your fifth-grade grammar book.

October 24, 2012 at 11:19 pm |

Atheism is not healthy for children and other living things

Prayer changes things .

October 24, 2012 at 8:52 pm |

hal 9001

I'm sorry, "Atheism is not healthy for children and other living things", but your assertions regarding atheism and prayer are unfounded. Using my Idiomatic Expression Equivalency module, the expression that best matches the degree to which your assertions may represent truths is: "TOTAL FAIL".

I see that you repeat these unfounded statements with high frequency. Perhaps the following book can help you:

I'm Told I Have Dementia: What You Can Do... Who You Can Turn to...
by the Alzheimer's Disease Society

October 24, 2012 at 10:07 pm |

Observer

"Creationism Is Not Appropriate for Children."

– Bill Nye

October 24, 2012 at 10:41 pm |

cristopher hitchens

@observer
Go to Sunday School every week
– Buffalo Bob Smith
Do kids tv hosts do all your thinking for you?

Prayer does not; you are such a LIAR. You have NO proof it changes anything! A great example of prayer proven not to work is the Christians in jail because prayer didn't work and their children died. For example: Susan Grady, who relied on prayer to heal her son. Nine-year-old Aaron Grady died and Susan Grady was arrested.

An article in the Journal of Pediatrics examined the deaths of 172 children from families who relied upon faith healing from 1975 to 1995. They concluded that four out of five ill children, who died under the care of faith healers or being left to prayer only, would most likely have survived if they had received medical care.

The statistical studies from the nineteenth century and the three CCU studies on prayer are quite consistent with the fact that humanity is wasting a huge amount of time on a procedure that simply doesn’t work. Nonetheless, faith in prayer is so pervasive and deeply rooted, you can be sure believers will continue to devise future studies in a desperate effort to confirm their beliefs."

The CNN Belief Blog covers the faith angles of the day's biggest stories, from breaking news to politics to entertainment, fostering a global conversation about the role of religion and belief in readers' lives. It's edited by CNN's Daniel Burke with contributions from Eric Marrapodi and CNN's worldwide news gathering team.